Blades of Darkness
by My Virtual Sword
Summary: Five days have passed since Kirito battled Nicholas the Renegade. New Years Eve is approaching, and when he meets up with Argo for info on a possible weapon, he doesn't expect her to come up with the crazy idea she does. On the first day of the brand new year, a brand new guild is born: the Blades of Darkness. (Beater Guild, eventual Kirito/Argo) Adopted from Insert New Name Here.
1. Chapter 1

Blades of Darkness

Chapter One: Eyes of Hatred

* * *

**Author's Note**

**Some of you may be thinking, "Wait, isn't this someone else's story?" Well, you're right. This was indeed a story by a buddy of mine called, **_**Insert New Name Here**_**. However, after conversing with them, followed by some heavy negotiations, they agreed to let me adopt this story, so long as I made some edits to the first two chapters before continuing.**

**That said, I've made some substantial changes to the original story of this name, such as when certain events occur. You'll see what they all are in due time, so I won't spoil anything for you.**

**And another thing: though the main pairing will be Kirito/Argo, that will **_**not**_** be the only pairing in this fic. I won't say that that means just yet, however. Sorry!**

**Well, other than all that, I'd say I'm just about done explaining things here! I guess I'll see you at the ending note!**

* * *

A nobody. That's what I am. No one would recognize me at first glance unless they've talked to me in person before, and no one who has really cares to anymore. Well, I guess that's not entirely true. I have one or two friends, though I often find myself questioning whether the feeling is mutual. After all, I'm a part of a hated breed in this game of life and death.

I'm a «Beater».

Actually, I was the first of the «Beaters». That epithet used to be reserved solely for me, and I liked it that way. Over time, however, it evolved into a term that was applied to all beta-testers who played solo. I always hated myself for that. For letting them share the hate that should be casted solely on me. But sadly, I could do nothing to ease their pain.

So I continued to fight alone on the front lines, doing my best to ignore the glares of hatred that were given to me by the other front-liners. The "normal" clearers. They hated me and all the other «Beaters» with a passion so great that it became policy amongst the front-liners to harass us at any given opportunity. It made me sick. But, yet again, I could do nothing to stop it.

Most of them don't even try to defend themselves when the "normal" players attack them, be it verbally or physically. It wasn't all that uncommon to see «Beaters» being attacked by assassins who had accepted a job to kill them. This either results in the «Beater» dying, or the assassin running away because their opponent was just too strong. Usually the latter, considering the ridiculously high level that most of us have.

But me? I'm not afraid to defend myself. I don't give a damn if people notice me and hate me. I move forward without fearing that someone will attack me at any moment. No one will even try, since everyone who can recognize me knows that I'm too powerful to tangle with. I'm not just a «Beater».

I'm the «Black Swordsman». The strongest of the «Beaters», and one of the only ones that has the nerve to fight on the front lines, where most of the hatred of the «Beaters» is gathered.

It's ironic, really. Because I don't care about others hating me, I've earned the respect of a few of the front-liners, not to mention most of my kind. And yet, the other «Beaters», who try as hard as they can to stay inconspicuous and avoid being harassed, are the ones who are hated on the most.

But I aim to change that. I don't know how yet, but I will.

You can count on it.

* * *

December 29th, 2023

Floor 50

Algade

* * *

As I walked through the streets of the fiftieth floor's main settlement, «Algade», I did my best to ignore the dirty looks I got from anyone in the area who wasn't an NPC. After all, this floor had just been unlocked, so the only players here were members of the clearing group, and they all knew me. I just had to act like their looks of hatred didn't faze me, and ignoring them was the best way to do so. On the off-chance that I met someone's eyes as they were looking at me angrily, I would just stare back with my usual emotionless mask.

This had become the norm ever since the incident on Christmas Eve. This marked the fifth day since then, and I hadn't met with any of my supposed friends since I parted with Klein. I had become more focused on clearing the game than ever before, and it showed in the way I mapped out the entire labyrinth of the forty-ninth floor. Since I knew that no one would take it from a «Beater» like me, I gave the data to one of the sub-leaders of the «Knights of the Blood» so that she could deliver it to the clearers.

That was two days ago. The forty-ninth floor was cleared the day after, and now, on December twenty-ninth, the fiftieth floor is already halfway explored. But I digress.

My current objective was to find a particular diner, the one that the game's most coveted information broker had told me we would meet at. She hadn't told me the reason for our meeting, but I figured that she just had some info on a powerful weapon or something. Not enough to really get me enthralled, but enough to pique my curiosity.

My eyes lit up for the faintest of moments as I turned a corner. I had finally found it; the diner that I had been searching the giant city over for was finally within a few steps. I had been searching for it for well over an hour, almost two, and now that I finally found it, I couldn't wait to go inside and give that damned info broker a piece of my mind for choosing such a hard-to-find place for our meeting.

Upon coming closer to the windows, I found the current subject of my annoyance sitting at the table right next to the window furthest from the door. All set to give her a nasty tongue-lashing, I walked over to the door, opening it and going in.

Immediately after I entered, I walked over to her table, an annoyed look plastered on my face. She looked up, flinching back when she saw my expression. I refrained from smirking in sick satisfaction. "You know that I spent the better part of two freaking _hours_ searching for this place, right?"

She smiled, obviously enjoying seeing me angry now that she was over the initial shock. It _was_ a rare sight, after all. "That's your fault for having terrible navigation skills. Besides, you could have used your «Tracking Skill» to look for me."

Her Cheshire cat grin after saying that matched her whisker marks perfectly, making her look more like a cat than she did her epithet, the «Rat». I almost smiled at how funny she looked because of it, but then I finally registered what she said.

At the realization that it really was my fault, I face-palmed. _How did I not think of that?_ I thought angrily, looking through the hand on my face to see a snickering info broker. "And how exactly is this funny, Argo?"

The tone of my voice immediately caused her to cease her snickering, and she quickly changed the subject. "So, I assume you want to know why I called you here."

_Right down to business as soon as she doesn't like where the conversation is heading, eh? Typical of her._

"No, I just thought we could talk about the nice, snowy weather we've been having— no shit, Argo," I replied, not willing to give up my anger just yet. "Of course I want to know why I'm here. So, what kind of info do you have for me?"

"We'll get to that," Argo said, looking at me with golden eyes that showed the slightest hint of… worry? No, that was impossible. There's no way she could have been worried about— "But Ki-bou, I'm seriously worried about you here. You've been leveling at a dangerous pace, and I know that if you keep soloing all the time, you'll end up dead one day."

"_Stay alive… so you can see the end of this world and find out why it was created."_

_Sachi…_

"Shut up…"

I looked Argo directly in the eyes, an angry look marring my features as those two words left my lips. She flinched back at the intensity of my expression. When I realized this, I took a moment to compose myself once more. "I'll survive. I'll see the end of this world. But I don't need anyone's help to do it."

"Listen to what you're saying, Ki-bou!" Argo shouted, catching the attention of what few players were in the diner. "The way you fight is almost suicidal! One day, you're going to get way in over your head, and you'll die!"

"Five days ago, I fought a flag mob that was almost as strong as a floor boss," I told her, making her eyes widen. Before she could say anything in retort, I continued, voice eerily calm. "And I beat it. It didn't even send me into the red. Not once. I'm pretty sure you know what I'm talking about.

"I soloed «Nicholas the Renegade», all for an item that, as it turns out, didn't even work."

Silence. I could see the realization in Argo's eyes, telling me that she was finally catching on as to why I was so determined to fight «Nicholas» that night.

"Do you really think I'd die to anything less than a floor boss?"

That was it. the whole point of my little speech, summed up in one sentence. I hadn't meant to reveal anything, but it looked like I unintentionally gave her a glimpse inside of my mind.

After she realized I was finished talking, Argo's tried her best to look unfazed by what I had accidentally shown her. "With your crazy attitude, you'll challenge a floor boss anyway!" she nearly shouted, eyes narrowed.

"I may be reckless, but I'm not a total idiot," I said, my eyes narrowing in turn. "I wouldn't challenge a floor boss by myself. I have to live until the end… so I can't do anything that would surely get me killed."

Argo sighed, looking at me with a sympathetic smile. One that I didn't deserve. "Something happened that night, didn't it?" she asked me, receiving nothing but silence in return. She sighed, realizing that she had struck a nerve with her remark, judging by my expression. "Well, whatever. You wanted to know why I called you here? I found some info on a one-handed sword on this floor. According to the quest, it's a sword that has unmatched fighting capacity. It's also a demonic drop, so you can expect it to have a crazy-high boost in Strength."

"Which also means that you would need to have a crazy-high Strength stat just to equip it," I said, looking at her with a more composed expression than before. "So, how would I go about getting this sword?"

"Someone's awful confident in their stats," Argo said, smiling smugly. "There's a quest on this floor that has you fight a flag mob, and it supposedly has two health bars. I'll give you the name of the quest and where to go, but only on one condition."

I looked at her with a cynical expression. "What is it?"

_Please, just don't say what I think you're going to say…_

"We party together for the quest," Argo said, her expression hardening. "Don't worry, I'll let you have the last attack. I use claws anyway, so it doesn't matter to me."

_Damn it!_

I began to weigh my options. I could decline and try to find the location of the quest myself, but knowing the size of «Algade», I figured that the fiftieth floor would be cleared before I found it. But if I partied with Argo, I would be putting another player in danger. Even if she was a beta-tester, she wasn't a part of the clearing group, and fighting wasn't a part of her profession as an info broker.

"What level are you?" I asked her. She knew that this would be the make-or-break question, and her eyes showed it.

"Check your friends list. My level will be there," she said, giving me a smirk as she pointed to my mouth. "But don't say it aloud."

I opened my menu, scrolling to my friends list and opening it. after looking a bit through the list, I clicked on her profile. When I saw her level, I nearly choked.

_Level sixty-eight?! She's almost as high as me!_

I sighed in resignation. "All right, you can come. Just…" I trailed off, not wanting to finish my sentence.

"Just what?" Argo asked me, an inquisitive expression on her face.

After several seconds of debate, I finally said what was on my mind. "Don't die."

She sighed at this, giving me the first genuine smile I had seen her give me since I got to the diner. "Don't worry about me, Ki-bou. I'll live. After all, I have to survive to sell you info!"

I laughed for the first time in months. And it was a real laugh, too, not one out of bitterness or self-loathing. "All right. Let's go, Argo."

* * *

After partying up, we left the diner. Argo led me straight to the city's «Teleport Gate», where she promptly warped us to a town near the «Valley of End», a dungeon that still hadn't been fully mapped out.

"The quest NPC is on the outskirts of the «Safe Area»," Argo told me, looking at me apprehensively. "Are you ready?"

"You're the one who looks nervous," I said, looking at her harshly for a moment before softening my gaze. I put my hands on her shoulders, softly saying, "I won't let you die, Argo."

"You're going to give people the wrong idea if you keep doing things like that," Argo said, a small smile tugging at her lips. Relieved to know that I had eased her nervousness, I sighed in contentment before her words sunk in.

"Things like what?" I queried, giving her a questioning look.

"Oh, nothing," she replied, walking further ahead. "C'mon! Let's go, Ki-bou!"

About ten minutes later, we found ourselves staring down a large, western-styled house on the outskirts of town. When I looked to my left, I could clearly see the entrance to the «Valley of End».

_That's probably where the quest will take place,_ I thought, looking back to the house. Argo had already walked up to the front door, turning back to motion for me to follow. I did so, and we opened the door, walking inside.

The interior of the house was much like I expected it to be. Wooden walls of a chestnut color, a sofa to our right, and a reclining chair in which sat an elderly man wearing a robe. Upon closer inspection, I noticed that the man had a golden exclamation point over his head, signifying that he was the quest NPC that Argo had informed me of.

She motioned for me to talk to the old man, who had a grim expression on his face. I took a deep breath, then asked him, "Sir, what's wrong?"

The NPC looked up, his eyebrows wrinkling as his eyes widened. Apparently, he didn't notice us as we came in, a common trait amongst quest NPCs. Still, most of them were not programmed to emulate surprise when a real player talked to them, so it was certainly strange that this one did.

At long last, the elderly NPC began to speak. "Traveling warriors, I beseech you to hear my request."

"What is it?" I queried, looking at him with a hardened look.

"A demon has killed my son. I was informed of his death this morning," he said, looking down. "He was a strong warrior, and he had gone out hunting for our food. He went a little deeper into the valley to look for some fruit, and never came back. When one of the townsfolk went to look for my son, he found his sword lying next to a sleeping demon."

"What is your request?" I asked, a newfound eagerness in my voice as I imagined what the sword could look like.

"Destroy the demon that killed my son!" the old man shouted, looking at me with a fire in his eyes.

At this, a window appeared before me. I read its contents.

* * *

_Quest: Take Revenge on the Valley Demon_

_Description: A demon has killed the son of one of the townspeople. Destroy this demon before it can bring any harm to others!_

_Accept?_

_Yes/No_

* * *

I touched the button to accept the quest, prompting one last line from the quest NPC.

"Thank you! Be sure to bring my son's sword back to me."

Something about the way he told us to bring his son's sword to him didn't sit right with me. I couldn't place why, but for some reason, his saying that seemed… ominous.

As we walked out of the house, I decided to voice my thoughts. "Hey, Argo."

"What is it?" she asked me, casting me a side-glance.

"Did you get the same feeling I did when he told us to bring back the sword? Something was off with the way he said that."

"Yeah, I was wondering if you caught that," Argo said, giving me a smug smile that made me want to choke her. "But there's nothing we can do about it now. Let's just get the sword."

"Right."

* * *

Watching Argo weave through the mobs all around us, delivering swift blows with her claws that always seemed to inflict some kind of status condition to her opponents… it was like watching an elegant yet highly dangerous dancer. In no time flat, she had destroyed an entire pack of the «Zombie Wolves» we had been facing, without any help at all.

_Man, she's incredible! And all she uses are those claws!_ I thought, watching as she kept on delivering strike after strike to all of the mobs around her with speed that rivaled my own.

"Ki-bou, what are you just sitting there for?" the object of my thoughts shouted, breaking me out of my trance.

"S-sorry!" I shouted, springing into action.

Looking around me, I found that I was completely surrounded by at least five of the «Zombie Wolves», and they were all closing in ever-so-slowly. Even so, I didn't feel a hint of fear. I had a few aces up my sleeve that I saved just for situations just like this.

I bent my knees, preparing to jump. I waited until I could see a yellow light coming from my sword, then leapt into the air.

«Lightning Fall»

When I came back down, I stabbed my blade into the ground. The resulting shockwave sent sparks of electricity in all directions, causing all of the «Zombie Wolves» around me to fly back and fall to the ground, paralyzed.

With step one out of the way, I got up, tearing my sword from the ground and running at the nearest enemy. With just a few slashes, it shattered into polygons, returning to the «Cardinal System» to await its AI reset and respawn.

I repeated this process on the rest of the «Zombie Wolves», not stopping until the entire field was clear of all mobs. After I finished, I heaved a sigh, turning to Argo. "You're amazing. You don't even look tired," I said, giving her a smile.

"Well, I put almost all of my stat points into AGI, so I can continuously perform attacks and skills without getting tired," she replied, waving her hand dismissively.

"I see," I said, not bothering to ask any of the thousand questions that remained in my mind after her statement. I knew that if I tried, she would only try to charge me for answers.

"So, it looks like the demon is probably up ahead," Argo said, pointing in front of us. Before I could ask her how she knew, she answered with, "It's the only part of this dungeon that we haven't mapped out."

"Well, then," I started, sheathing my sword for the moment. "Are you ready?"

"Always."

With that, we walked into the next area of the dungeon. We were ready for anything. We were going to get that sword, complete the quest, and—

"What the hell?"

The demon before us was not at all what we were expecting. Standing at least three times my own size, I couldn't think of anything more menacing. Its skin was coal-black, and its leathery wings stretched out to at least four meters. In its clawed right hand, it held a black sword that seemed to radiate a darkness that cast a shadow on darkness itself. I looked at its name and level, shuddering in fear as I did so.

«Level 88 NM: The Valley Demon»

— Die. We were going to die.

* * *

**Author's Note**

**And we're back! So, how do you like my edits? I'd say they fix some things that my buddy Insert left wide open. You'll see what I mean in the next two chapters, I assure you.**

**Anyway, I'm going to have to apologize to you about this: unlike the original, this story is **_**not**_** accepting OCs. I plan on using a few that I've either crafted myself, or have gotten permission to use from other people on the site (primarily **_**Insert New Name Here**_**).**

**Well, other than all that, I hope you liked my revision! Let me stress that I **_**did**_** get permission to adopt this story; I didn't just randomly copy it.**

**Okay, it's disclaimer time!**

**I don't own the SAO light novels, any of their adaptations, or any of the characters, items, or other things I borrow from them. I'm way to poor for that to even be a possibility. Plus, I live in America, not Japan. Hopefully, that clears up any misunderstandings, Aniplex!**

**See you in the next chapter!**


	2. Chapter 2

Blades of Darkness

Chapter Two: The Elucidator

* * *

**Author's Note**

**Sorry for taking so long to get this out, everyone! I wanted to make substantial progress on chapter three before posting this, even though this chapter's revision has been done for like, a week already. Well, I've made a bit of progress now, so I figured that it would be safe to post this.**

**Also, stay tuned for a very special news announcement in the bottom author's note!**

**I think that's about it for the top note! See you below!**

* * *

_"Well, then," I started, sheathing my sword for the moment. "Are you ready?"_

_"Always."_

_With that, we walked into the next area of the dungeon. We were ready for anything. We were going to get that sword, complete the quest, and—_

_"What the hell?"_

_The demon before us was not at all what we were expecting. Standing at least three times my own size, I couldn't think of anything more menacing. Its skin was coal-black, and its leathery wings stretched out to at least four meters. In its clawed right hand, it held a black sword that seemed to radiate a darkness that cast a shadow on darkness itself. I looked at its name and level, shuddering in fear as I did so._

_«Level 88 NM: The Valley Demon»_

— _Die. We were going to die._

* * *

_We are so dead!_ I thought as it stared us down, its eyes radiating hunger for blood. I faintly registered the black and violet fire creeping behind us, slowly cutting our only escape route off. Even still, I just stood there, paralyzed with fear as Argo tried over and over to get me to respond.

"Ki-bou!" Argo shouted one last time, making my head snap up in her direction.

Finally, I responded, though not in the way she had hoped. "We're screwed…"

"What are you talking about?!" Argo shouted at me with a fearful expression. "If you can solo «Nicholas the Renegade», then why is this thing so scary?"

I glared at her, eyes narrowed as I began to yell back in reply. "Sure, «Nicholas» was around the strength of a floor boss, but it was extremely slow! It didn't land a single hit on me because of my speed… but demon-type mobs are faster, their attacks are harder to evade, and they have higher defense!"

I looked back to the demon in front of us, trying desperately to formulate a plan before it decided to make the first move. I could see its gaze moving towards us, making it even harder for me to think.

_Come on… I've gotta figure out a way to save us! To hell with the LA bonus, we just need to get out of here alive! But to do that, we still have to beat this thing!_

I tried to remember any weaknesses that demon-type mobs had, finding only one.

_But that doesn't help us at all! The only weakness it has is having extremely low resistance to status conditions, and my sword doesn't have any effect like that! Wait a second—_

I then remembered how Argo's claws always seemed to inflict status conditions to the «Zombie Wolves» we were fighting earlier. My eyes widened as I finally finished devising a strategy. "That's it!"

I turned to Argo once more. I gave her a commanding look, which seemed to ease the fear she had gained while I had been thinking. "Argo! What status conditions can your claws inflict?"

Her eyes lit up in realization of my plan. "Other than when I use status skills, my claws have a passive of granting «Bleeding», «Poison», «Stun», or a really low chance to inflict «Paralysis» on every critical hit!"

"And I assume you've focused your gear to be all about crit rate and damage?" I queried, looking at her with a smirk.

"And evasion!" Argo replied, smirking right back. "So, what's the plan?"

_Which means her defense must be paper-thin. Still, this will work!_

"I'll keep its attention focused on me, and you keep attacking it from behind," I whispered, looking from her to the demon in front of us. "Wait until you see it get «Paralysis» or «Stun», then back off and let me wail on it until it wears off. Ignore when it gets anything else, since the others are just HP sappers."

_The HP sappers will be really helpful, but they won't stop it from attacking just as fast._

"Sounds like a plan!" she whispered in reply, turning to the demon in front of us.

"Ready…" I started, drawing my sword ever-so-slowly.

As soon as my sword fully left its scabbard, the demon before me finally began to move towards us at an alarming speed. But I wasn't afraid. Not anymore.

"Set…"

Luckily, it began by targeting me. It flew towards me, raising its black sword into the air in preparation for a downward strike.

"Go!"

Just before its sword came into contact with my head, I jumped aside, watching with satisfaction as its blade completely missed me and left a huge gash in the ground. In the split second that the blade remained in lodged the ground, I jumped once more, this time up into the air right by its head.

By that point, Argo had already made her way to the back of the demon, and was about to strike. I knew that to keep its attention on me, I would have to strike it before she did. If Argo landed a critical hit on it from behind before I had even hit it once, all of its attention would be drawn to her. And so, I pierced straight through its head with my blade, then dragged it down as I fell until I had cut clean through its entire body, leaving a giant red mark.

Of course, this didn't cut it in half, as much as I wish it did. But no, that would end the battle, and the system wouldn't allow the battle to end before its HP ran out.

_Which reminds me…_

I looked at its HP as Argo continuously assaulted the demon. Roughly a sixteenth of the first of two bars was depleted, showing just how powerful it was.

Then, I noticed its HP go down by a whopping five percent all at once. I looked under its health bars, finding that it had been afflicted with the «Poison» condition. I smirked before springing back into action.

Just before its attention switched to Argo, I hit the demon in its midsection with a swift horizontal right-to-left slash. As it swung its large, black sword to retaliate, I brought my own sword up to defend.

The force of the blast created when they made contact was pure insanity. I was slowly being pushed down into the ground, the sheer power of the demon overwhelming my incredibly high Strength stat.

Argo took notice of this, looking over with a concerned expression and shouting, "Ki-bou!"

She began to run to me, but I stopped her with a strained yell. "Just keep attacking, Argo! You need to paralyze it!"

Just as I felt that my arms were about to give from the force of the clash, the demon's arm went limp, causing its sword to fall to the ground. I got up shakily, breathing ragged. Even still, I knew that the battle was essentially over.

It had been paralyzed.

I ran over so that I was standing on its body, then crouched down, preparing to jump. My blade started glowing a gleaming silver. Finally…

"Haaaah!"

«Meteor Fall»

I kicked off of the demon, flipping in midair before coming back down in a devastating stab at the demon's abdomen. Silver light erupted from the wound, blinding all for a few brief seconds. When my vision came back to normal, I cast my eyes on its health bars, finding that my skill, along with the HP-sapping conditions it had been afflicted with, had almost completely depleted its first health bar.

Once the post-motion delay of my skill wore off, I jumped off of the demon's body, landing beside it and immediately beginning to hack and slash away. Then, an idea struck me.

_I wonder if I could cut off its wings… only one way to find out! When it recovers, I'll move behind it and slash its wings clean off! But until then…_

I continued hacking and slashing, occasionally activating a skill. I didn't want to kill it just yet; I needed to gauge how much damage I could do so that I could assure that the LA dropped for me.

When I saw it start to get up, I backed off and looked to Argo, who had been watching me unleash hell on it from afar. "Argo! I've got an idea, but I need you to hold its attention for a few seconds to do it! Think you can handle it?"

"Yeah!" she shouted in reply.

"All right, then…" I said, staring the demon down. It suddenly came flying towards me, preparing to strike with its sword.

Just as it reached me, bringing its sword down to strike, I put my sword next to the left side of my waist, preparing to activate another skill. Within a mere fraction of a second, the skill was ready, having charged more quickly due to my ring's special effect of «Skill Cast Time Reduction».

«Slant»

In one lightning-fast diagonal up-right slash, I knocked the demon's blade upwards, stunning the boss for a split-second. Even that small time frame was enough.

"Switch!"

I backed off, allowing Argo to close in on it in my place. As she began attacking it, I ran around to its back, activating a skill with the perfect trajectory to cut both wings off at once.

«Vertical Arc»

I slashed from its left shoulder, through its left wing joint, then all the way down to its mid-back before my sword changed its trajectory for the second hit. Said second hit then ensued, dragging my blade up through its right wing joint and all the way up its right shoulder, making a V-like shape with the two slash marks.

After a second of nothing happening, I began to lose hope. Then, just as I was about to resume attacking, the wings well off, hitting the ground before shattering into blue and white polygons. The demon roared in pain, letting go of its sword and falling to the ground.

"It worked!" I shouted, turning to Argo with a triumphant smile. "Argo, let's finish this thing off!"

"You got it!" she yelled in response, beginning to attack the demon with everything she had.

Blade now glowing a radiant silver, I jumped into the air, preparing to activate another skill similar to «Meteor Fall». I spun in the air, completing the initial motions for the skill.

«Devastation Driver»

After finishing my spin, I stayed in my spot in the air, thrusting my blade towards the demon six times. Though my blade didn't reach it on its own, each thrust formed a blade of energy, and when all had been formed, they created a circular pattern. Then, my sword made one final thrust in the center of the circle, causing all seven energy blades to go crashing down on the demon.

A small explosion erupted from each energy blade as they all made contact with the demon's body, dealing massive damage that sent it into the red, hanging onto only a shred of its last HP bar. As I fell back down, I chained «Devastation Driver» into one, final skill.

«Lightning Fall»

"Haaaah!"

My blade came crashing down into the abdomen of the demon, depleting the last of its HP and earning me the «Last Attack Bonus».

Silence.

Then, after several seconds, the sound of shattering glass resounded throughout the area. I had done it…

I had killed «The Valley Demon». Only the sword it wielded remained, shrinking to normal human size as it lay on the ground in front of me.

I fell to my knees, panting heavily. I could feel a dull throbbing coming from inside my head, and I felt that my entire body was drenched in sweat. My vision was no better, growing hazy from sheer exhaustion. It took everything I had just to stay conscious now that the adrenaline rush of the fight had worn off.

Argo walked over to me, plopping down next to me as soon as she reached my side. I could see the rise and fall of her chest, signifying that she was panting heavily. "So… we did it…"

I opted not to say anything, merely smiling in response as I lay down and looked at her. She looked back, a smile of her own forming on her features.

It was then that I noticed a window pop up in front of me. It read:

* * *

_Congratulations!_

_You defeated «The Valley Demon»!_

_EXP: 2000_

_Col: 5000_

* * *

I waved the window closed, and another one immediately took its place. At this one, I smiled.

* * *

_Congratulations!_

_You got the Last Attack Bonus!_

_Bonus Item: [One-Handed Straight Sword] «Elucidator»_

* * *

I immediately waved the window closed, proceeding to go into my inventory and check out the stats of my new weapon. When I did, I smiled; I had never seen such a powerful sword.

I wasted no time in moving to my equipment menu to equip it. When I tried, however, I got a message that devastated me.

_You've got to be kidding me…_

I didn't have a high enough Strength stat to equip it. I was too low by a single point.

"Of course…" I whispered as the gravity of what just happened hit me, beginning to laugh at the irony. "Even I, the strongest of the «Beaters», am not good enough."

"What do you mean?" Argo queried, looking at me inquisitively.

"My strength stat…" I said bitterly. "It's too low. I can't equip it. It figures that this would be my punishment."

"Look, Ki-bou," Argo started, giving me a hard look. "Being a «Beater» has nothing to do with it. I don't know how you made that connection, but it isn't right."

I didn't reply. Instead, I only laughed bitterly, getting up shakily and walking towards the sword the demon left behind. I then touched the air over it, proceeding to hit the button to send it into my inventory.

I walked towards the area's exit, motioning with my hand for Argo to follow. She silently complied, and we made our way back to the quest NPC's house, a massive tension forming between us.

Throughout the entire walk back to the house of the NPC, no words were exchanged. I simply wanted to be left alone, and Argo acknowledged and respected my wish.

* * *

When we finally got there, I saw the quest NPC sitting on a rocking chair just outside the front door. The gray question mark over his head that had appeared when we accepted the quest had turned golden in our absence, signifying that we had completed his request. I hastened my pace, Argo following suit until we reached the house.

I went into my «Quest Items» inventory, scrolling down to find the sword we promised to bring back to the old man. When I found it, I touched the «Make into Object» button, then held out my hands to catch it when it materialized.

Oddly enough, once it materialized, I never got the chance to catch it. It just disappeared from the air with a rush of wind. When I looked up, I found that the quest NPC had disappeared from his chair. I looked to Argo, and she looked just as confused as I was.

I then heard the _swish _of a sword being swung through the air from my right. I turned to the source, finding the old man swinging his son's blade with an eerie smile on his face. "Thank you for bringing my blade back to me, warriors."

"You said it was your son's sword," I replied, drawing my own blade. I knew something was up, something dangerous. We might have had a fight on our hands, and I wasn't about to back down.

"This blade…" the NPC started, a devious smirk forming on his face. As the smirk formed, his wrinkles disappeared, and his skin began to darken and grow scales. "Was what contained my power! My son saw my plans, and he sealed my power within this sword! He then took it to the demon that you graciously destroyed for me, in hopes that no one would be able to defeat it!"

I grit my teeth, watching as the old man slowly turned into a bigger version of the demon we just fought. Four health bars appeared over its head, filling up one by one until each one was a light blue color.

_Damn… there's no way out of this!_ I thought, closing my eyes tightly.

"Ki-bou!" Argo shouted, shaking my shoulder. "Snap out of it!"

I opened my eyes, looking at Argo with an angry expression. "What could we possibly do to beat this thing?!" I shouted, making her flinch back in fear.

"No need," a voice said from behind us. I turned around, finding a humanoid being with feathery white wings. On its back was a quiver filled to the brim with arrows, and in its left hand rested a large bow. "I will defeat my father for you."

_What the hell? Is this some sort of event? And how can an angel be the son of a demon? Well… I'd better just go with it for now._

What happened next seemed like a blur. One second, the demon began charging towards the angel, and the next, more than ten arrows lodged themselves into its body. In an instant, the demon exploded into countless polygons, and the angel came over to me and Argo, heaving a sigh of relief.

"You need not worry about my father coming back. He is dead," the angel pointed out the obvious. "Are you two the ones who brought the sword for him?"

I didn't know what to do. If the quest NPC had been telling the truth, then this angel had tried to keep the sword from him. If he realized that we were the ones who brought it back, he might turn on us.

_Damn… what do I do?_ I thought, turning to Argo. She merely nodded, looking just as scared as I was.

"Yeah, that was us," I finally relented, looking down. "Sorry."

"You needn't worry, brave warriors," the angel said, putting his hand on my shoulder. "I know that he must have tricked you into bringing it to him. Even still, it's quite amazing that you were able to defeat the demon with only two people. It would have usually taken an entire army. Allow me to reward you for your efforts."

"What do you mean?" Argo queried, speaking up for the first time.

The angel smiled at us. "You will see."

A light began to emanate from him, and after a few seconds, he disappeared, leaving nothing but a game window in his wake.

"What…?" I queried, reading the window's contents.

* * *

_Congratulations!_

_You have completed the quest: Take Revenge on the Valley Demon_

_Rewards_

_EXP: 2500_

_Col: 7500_

_[Passive Skill] «Master Wielder»_

_«Master Wielder» skill description: Permanently lower requirements for weapon equip_

* * *

I waved the window closed, looking over at Argo with a wide smile on my face. She smirked back. "I got the same reward you did, Ki-bou. I know exactly what you're thinking."

I quickly opened my equipment menu, tapping my main hand slot and selecting the «Elucidator». The sword I already had equipped immediately dematerialized, and I felt the weight of a different sword on my back. I pulled it out, noting that it felt significantly heavier than my old sword. Holding the blade before me, I took note of its every feature.

The «Elucidator» was obsidian-black in color, with edges of a gleaming silver. The upper part of the cross guard had the shape of a spiked arc, which held the same sharpness as the blade. Upon closer inspection, I deduced that the arc actually _was_ a part of the blade. The lower part of the cross guard was thicker, so as to hold the blade in place. A small silver semi-sphere resided on each side of the lower part of the cross guard, with a black X on top.

Near the end of the blade, I could see a white cross engraved on both sides. The cross seemed to radiate power. I smirked.

_This thing… is awesome. Let's give it a test swing!_

Without any warning, I swung the blade in a downward arc, watching as it left a trail of sparkling black light. I then proceeded to swing it horizontally, then upwards, then diagonally, and so on. Once I had run out of ways to swing it, my arm felt sore due to the strain of swinging a much heavier sword than usual.

"It's heavy…" I said, heaving a tired sigh as I sheathed it, a smile crossing my features. "It's a good sword!"

I turned to Argo, who smiled broadly at me. "You seem to be in a much better mood."

"Well, yeah," I said, looking to my brown-haired partner. _Wait… when did she take her hood off?_

"Since you're in such a good mood, would you mind listening to a proposition of mine?" Argo queried, looking at the ground.

"Sure," I said happily, giving her a thumbs-up. "What's up?"

She looked back up, a rare expression on her face: one of grave seriousness. "Ki-bou. The way you fight is dangerous. Even with your new sword, I'm still worried that you'll get killed one day because you fight so recklessly. So… I was wondering…"

I was expecting for her to say for me to be careful. To stop fighting solo all the time. Anything but what came next.

"Why don't we start a guild?"

* * *

**Author's Note**

**There really wasn't that much that needed fixing in this chapter, so I mostly kept stuff the same. From what I remember doing, I altered some dialogue, added some description here and there, and that's about it.**

**Before I leave you with the disclaimer, I should probably mention that I'm going to publish a third story on this account soon. It's kind of a used idea, but I made some changes to the premise such, so I think it's okay. I even asked the person whom I believe is the father of the premise idea (**_**Insert New Name Here**_**) in the SAO archive for permission to use it, so I'd say it's all good.**

**I won't say much on the story other than that the first chapter will be relatively short, with the actual chapter content being around two-thousand words (I've actually finished that, and I'm just working on the author's notes). Sorry about that, but I couldn't figure out a way to stretch it out any longer without going into the content I'm reserving for its next chapter.**

**Well, that's it for now. I'm too lazy to write that disclaimer saying that I don't own the SAO light novel series, any of its adaptations, or anything/one I borrow from it, so I'll just let you—**

**I just said what I said I wouldn't say, didn't I?**

**Ciao!**


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